It is well known that the vagina is a relatively long, hollow, tube like structure that extends from the cervix or the outer end of the uterus down to the labia minora. The interior of the vagina is composed of a mucous membrane and an outer, smooth muscle closely attached to it. While glands are present in the vaginal lining itself, vaginal secretions can arise from the glands in the cervical canal of the uterus such as bartholin's and skene's glands. The lining of the vaginal cavity also responds to stimulation from various ovarian hormones either by building up new cell layers or by shedding old ones. Likewise, mucous is developed in the cervical canal of the uterus at other times, such as in the proliferative phase of the menstrual cycle where the endometrium thickens and its glands begin their secretion of mucous. Thus, it is well known that a variety of secretions develop varying amounts of mucous and other material as the result of a variety of factors and conditions.
Normally, such secretions are clean but occassionally debris in the form of blood or from the deposition of seminal fluid can accumulate. Accordingly, it is desirable at times to be able to have a convenient disposable swab or refreshner available for purposes of cleansing the vaginal area or for purposes of adding or treating the vaginal area with fragrances, medications, germicides or deodorants.
Many types of vaginal devices have been suggested including plunger type devices as in Rogers, U.S. Pat. No. 1,256,831, swabs as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,228,393, or foam type devices directly formed in their outer container as in Ravel, U.S. Pat. No. 4,260,570.